How is everyone doing?

What exercising has helped you the most?

What foods? How many times a week do you gag or throw up?

For me I am okay my 2nd fill just last week I was feeling kinda tight... but made it thru and I am doing okay now.

Exercising every morining for an hour... weights and treadmill. A lot of running up the bleachers!!!

For Breakfast I normally do Slim Fast Protein shake. lunch and dinner it varies.... I travel all over for my job so not alot of sit at home meals. I try being careful but eating out is hard. I have business meetings and the men are eating steak and drinking beer. I will drink a beer with them... but I am having trouble with the steak. I get tired of chicken and mashed potates! Only two beers a week still looking for something I can eat without "slimming". Any ideas will greatly be appreciated.

No doubt that cat bath was a workout!! LOL I've been going to Curves and that sure has increased my stamina and energy. I cut back on lots of the 'junk' food and 'unjunk' food.. I think I need another fill, but trying to wait at least 3 months, (fill Apr. 5).. I don't know why, I just don't want to run out of room of fillings, when I still have x-amount of weight to lose and no help... make sense??

No doubt that cat bath was a workout!! LOL I've been going to Curves and that sure has increased my stamina and energy. I cut back on lots of the 'junk' food and 'unjunk' food.. I think I need another fill, but trying to wait at least 3 months, (fill Apr. 5).. I don't know why, I just don't want to run out of room of fillings, when I still have x-amount of weight to lose and no help... make sense??

I don't think it is possible for you to run out of room for fillings. It is possible to fill the band until you are completely blocked and not even Water will get through. I don't think you have to worry about it.

If you are hungry, why not just get another fill to make it easier on yourself and help the weight to come off a little faster or more steady? They always tell me the best gauge of whether you need another fill is that you are not losing 1-2 pounds per week and are getting physically hungry (not head hungry) between meals.

Well, that makes sense.. duh!! Its not head hunger.. my stomach is actually growling.. I'm gonna see how the month goes, and decide on another fill. I could go next week?? hmmmm.. need to put some thought into this.. I do get hungry, many times I don't fill full..

I've gotten to 70 pounds this morning, but I know I will struggle with yoyo'ing for a week or two and then more will come off.. so I do believe I'll call and get another fill next week... I need that sweet spot sooner than my 'logical' side is telling me!!

Thanks HeatherO....

I have really enjoyed the Myoplex Light bars. They have 15g of Protein and 190 calories. They are really easy to chew up into small bites, and they taste pretty good. The only downside is they do have 4.5g of fat which is way to high, but I guess everything is a trade off now days. They also keep me from being hungry for at least 4 hours.

Now onto another subject. I have now resigned myself to the fact that eating will cause me pain. I really don't feel like I have a pouch, but rather everything goes right into the band as soon as i swallow. If something chooses not to go down, the pain starts immediately. I believe I have good restriction because there is very little I can eat without it hurting.

I guess my question is, is this normal? i currently have 5cc in a small ap band which I believe is 10cc.

Hello, I have 6.2 cc in my 10cc band. I had to get a slight unfill recently and that half cc really made a difference. I find that breakfast is a no-go but if I am super super hungry I have a couple bites of yogurt to ease it. I usually have about 4-6 ounces for lunch and a south beach meal for dinner. I find that I can eat most anything just not anything doughy. Nothing that clumps together like soft bread. I fill up fast and seem to be getting the knack of it. I find that I have lost my taste for lots of things I used to eat lots of. I also find that I can live with just a taste of some things that are 'bad'. I love my band. LOVE it. It has changed everything.

I am 6.1 cc in a 10cc band, and think I need a bit more. I have lost one pound in three weeks, and had been averaging about 1 a week. I am able to eat a little too much these days. Eating healthy things, but a bit too much.

On another note, had a complete physical last week, and got the results today, BP was 110/70, Cholesterol was 156, among other things. My BP was generally average in the past, but at last years physical, my cholesterol was 214. So another great result of losing weight.

B-Man, I would call the docs office. You should not be feeling pain when you eat something.

B-man, I agree with Chrisann: you shouldn't be in pain every time you eat, and certainly not if you're chewing things to the right consistency. Go see your doctor.

And on a related note, I'm really happy with my level of restriction, 3.5 cc in a 5 cc band. I pb if I'm not careful, but when I pay close attention to what I'm eating it works just the way it's supposed to. I'd like to lose a little faster (who wouldn't?), and I get frustrated because my body's way of losing weight is to drop a couple of pounds at once, then bounce around for a week or so, slowly settling back down at the low number, then drop a couple more, then bounce, etc. It prevents me from being able to closely track what does and doesn't work as far as loss goes. Overall, though, I'm thrilled with my loss (I'm thisclose to the 50 pound mark) and with my band.

Hey everyone! Well I'm just a bit over 5 months out and down 70 pounds! I'm excited but I haven't lost anything in over three weeks. Everyone that knows me can hardly tell I have lost any weight. That is the most frusterating part. I still have 100 pounds to go. My last fill the Dr wanted me to wait for two months to come back in. I am eating way too much. So going to try to slip in before next month. I'm at 4.5 cc's in a 10 cc band. More often then not I will swallow something to big and end up in pain. I have noticed that my energy level is starting to pick up a bit. So all in all I have to say I'm still thrilled with my band :smile: Good luck to everyone!

Congratulations all. I've been exercising hiking & swimming. The more I hike up hill, the more pounds that melt. I haven't had any foods I couldn't handle. no hurling. Yesterday I got an answer to a question I asked when I 1st came to LapBandTalk.com. Dr.Curry sent me an e-mail rating the Realize band as good. Having several male patients that required no-fills. Ladies you get to live 7&1/2 years longer, fair enough. I just needed to see that for me. Banded 1/15/08 By Dr. Soong at SWCC, Las Vegas, Nevada. I was so fat that my Orthopedic Doctor Thalggot hurt his back rolling me over for 2 day spine fusion surgery. lost 120 pounds, no fills yet! hasta pronto, George:biggrin2:

I am down about 60 pounds, with 25-30 more to go. I still struggle with head hunger, but the physical hunger is definitely under control. I had 1 fill so far, and that has done the trick for me. I would be eating much more if my fill wasn't working properly. I probably PB about 1-2 X per week, and it is usually not from eating too much food, it is usually from eating the wrong foods...pastas, breads, pastries, cakes and other starchy foods. They always get stuck!

I limit my exercise to activities I like...mostly tennis, yoga and walking. As long as I participate in activities I enjoy, I have no problem committing to 4-5 days a week. I even throw in one day of weight training as well.

I am still tweaking my eating program. Breakfast is usually a cup of decaf, and a Carnation Instant Breakfast made with 1% lowfat milk. I can rarely get solid foods down before noon. lunch can be a baked potato with cottage cheese; a grilled chicken salad; a smoothie or Protein shake; or some turkey and Swiss cheese. It is always a very small portion. Occasionally, I will crave a mid-afternoon snack. A piece of string cheese, or some hummus and veggies usually hit the spot. I will eat what ever my family has for dinner...a lean protein, salad, veggie and a potato...just a very tiny portion of it. Since I am the family cook, I can always keep the meal fairly "lap-friendly". If I have been good throughout the day, I will have a low fat pudding for dessert, or a few spoons of ice cream. It is amazing how a few spoons of real ice cream are so satisfying! I will occasionally even splurge on a truffle or a few spoons of a real dessert. Yum! I also find it very important to stay well hydrated. Water is very necessary, but I also treat myself to Fuze Slenderize beverages, iced coffee and diet cranberry juice over lots ice.

I have found a few tricks to dining out. One is to only order Soup and a salad. Another is to share an appetizer with the table, then only order an appetizer or salad. Another is to share an entree. My favorite is to just order family style. If none of these ideas work...there is always a doggie bag to bring home the leftovers!

Kcintx,

I also do curves, I forgot what they said for almost a year, remember it's 3x's a week to MAINTAIN. So I have to get at least 3 in . my kids bought me a wii fit for my birthday so when I can't get to curves I can still get a work-out in . it's great. Peg sorry the ticker isn't working for me today but I have lost 32 pounds since my surgery Jan 30,2008.